Improvement in carpet-stretchers



E.'P. SHAH-ER.

Carpet-Stretcher. 7 No. 165,032, Patente dlune 29,1875.

THE GRAPHIC COPHOTO -LITH.39&41 PARK PLACENA.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD P. SHAFFER, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN CARPET-STRETCHERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 165,032, dated June 29, 1875; application filed April 17, 1875.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, EDWARD P. SHAFFER,

of Rochester, in the county of Monroe and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Carpet- Stretchers and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompan ing drawings, making part of this specification.

Figure 1 is a plan or top view of my inven-' tion as set for use. 'Fig. 2 is an end view of the same, looking in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 1.

The object of my invention is to provide a simple, cheap, and convenient lever carpetstretcher.

It consists mainlyin the employment of a head having a pivoted clamp, by which it is temporarily attached to the floor, and to this head is pivoted, on a vertical axis, a swinging lever, which carries the toothed head. The head A is bifurcated at one end, as shown, to receive the pivoted clamping-dog D. The latter may be formed about as shown, being counterweighted, so as to insure the retention of the tooth or point 2' within or between the side bars of the head A. The clamping-point i may be formed upon or set in the dog D in any suitable manner. The opposite end of the head A is preferably provided with a rubher or other cushion, g. The point i is so set in the dog as to throw the head forward against the base-board (indicated by the line G) when said point is driven into the floor, and by means of the cushion that end of the head is held firmly, without marring the baseboard. The lever B is pivoted to the top of the head A at d. The socket b is fitted to encircle this lever, and the head h is hinged thereto, as shown at r, Fig. 2. The head h is locked in its normal position, as shown in full lines, by means of the button 0, which is also pivoted to the socket. This head is profull lines in Fig. 1. The corner of the carpet being first secured in its proper place, the point i in the dog is then driven into the floor by striking upon the head n. The lever B is then swung back beyond the position shown, the handle 0 thrown over, as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 2, and the points 0 pressed into the carpet, which is then caught and held uponthe head by swinging the handle 0 to its normal position, where it is locked by the button 0. The outer end of the lever B is then forced toward the position of the dotted lines, until the edge of the carpet meets the base, where several inches of it opposite the head h maybe nailed. The handle 0 is then released by turning the button 0, the lever B swung back, the head moved along the lever to a section not nailed, and the operation repeated, and so on until it is nailed the Whole length of the lever, or nearly so. By a stroke of the hammer upon the counter-weight f, the point '5 is withdrawn, when the imple ment may be moved to the next section. It will be seen that the carpet is stretched toward the left, as the tenter-head and lever are forced to a line parallelto the base-board.

The implement is adjusted to permit of nailing from-a left'hand corner toward the right, by reversing the head in the direction of the circular dotted arrow, and slipping oif and reversing the clasp b on the lever. The bearing-face of the head A, between it and the lever B, should be more or less crowning, to permit the outer end of the latter to be raised without disturbing the head.

What I claim as my invention is 1. In combination with the head A, clamping-dog D, and lever B, the cushion g, as and for the purposes set forth.

2. In combination with the pivoted lever B, having a vertical axis, the sliding clasp b, having the tenter-head h hinged or otherwise attached thereto, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

E. P. SHAFFER.

Witnesses:

DANIEL Woon, WM. S. LOUGHBOROUGH. 

